RIJHA NEWSLETTER
Rhode Island Jewish Historical Association
The life and times of R
BY JAIME WALDEN
RIJHA archivist Samuel Turco recently conducted an oral-history interview with R “Bib” Salk Grossman, 98, capturing the life story of the Providence native.
Born on May 23, 1926, at 128 Early St., Bib entered the world during a fierce thundersto Her mother, Lillian Cohen Salk, chose to g birth at home to stay with her dog, Snowba who was about to have puppies
Bib’s father, Benjamin Salk, and her three older brothers – Albert, Morton and Harve shared their small two-bedroom home in th tight-knit family.
Bib’s family belonged to Temple Beth Israe on Niagara Street in South Providence. Her uncle, Jacob Israel Cohen, known as J.I., w the executive director of the Jewish Commu Center, which was then housed in a mansio
IN THIS ISSUE
LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT
UPCOMING EVENTS
DONATIONS & GRANTS
ROSE 'BIB' GROSSMAN on Benefit Street in Providence. He transformed the mansion into a vibrant community hub, offering English, parenting, jobskills classes and more to the community and newly arrived immigrants
Both of Bib’s parents had emigrated from St. Petersburg, Russia. Her father, Benjamin, born on Sept. 25, 1889, apprenticed as an upholsterer at just nine years old. Benjamin’s father, Louis, was a skilled tailor who made military uniforms, allowing the family to live near the czar’s palace
Benjamin, facing mandatory service in the czar’s army, fled Russia in 1908, arriving in New York City aboard the Oceanic.
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Alvin and Bib Grossman at Camp Tamiment, in the Poconos, in 1951
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Bib’smother,Lillian,wasbornonJune28, 1894,toIsraelandEstherCohen,inSt. Petersburg.Hergreat-grandfather,Moshe, servedasanofficerfortheczar,which grantedthefamilyprivilegesuncommonfor Jews
Bib’sgrandfather,IsraelCohen,anduncle JacobarrivedintheUS in1907,fleeing politicalpersecution.Theysettledin Providence,whereIsrael’sbrother,Abram Cohen,acantor,providedrefuge.
AfterarrivinginRhodeIsland,Bib’sparents metthroughheruncleJacob.Benjamin workedatFullerBrothersUpholstery,in Pawtucket,earningjust$2perweek.
AlthoughBenjaminoncedreamedof becomingadentist,heultimatelyremainedin upholstery,wherehestartedhisown successfulslipcoverbusiness,BluebirdSlip Covers,inPawtucket
BibattendedHopeHighSchoolandlater graduatedfromEdgewoodSecretarial School,despitebeingrecruitedbyPembroke College,thenBrownUniversity’ssister institution.
ShebecameamedicalsecretaryatSt. Joseph’sHospital,inProvidence,andlater workedintheX-raydepartmentatBeth IsraelHospital,inBoston.
Eventually,BibreturnedtoProvidence, wheresheworkedasabookkeeperat TremontFinanceCompany,intheIndustrial TrustBuilding.Watchingthetrainsfromher officewindowinspiredfrequentweekend tripstoNewYorkCitytoseeBroadway showsandvisitLindy’sforcheesecake.
Duringasummertriptoacampforadults, CampTamimentinthePoconoMountains, in1951,apoundingrainstormledRosetoan unexpectedmeetingwithherfuturehusband, AlvinGrossman.
“I[went]outthedoorandit’scomingdown,” Bibsaid “BythetimeIgottothedining
y hairisdown,andmymakeupisallgone.
“Thatwasthebeginningoftheromancebetween AlvinGrossmanandBibSalk.Hedriedmeout.”
AlvinandBibreconnectedinNewYorkCity overLaborDayweekendin1951,andby Valentine’sDay1952,theywereengaged, marryingthatMay Theirfamilysoongrewwith thebirthoftheirchildren,GarriandJodie TheGrossmansspentmuchoftheirmarriedlife inNewYorkstate,whereAlvinroseinMonroe Countypolitics,inRochester.
UnderPresidentJohnF.Kennedy,hewas appointedaUS Marshal,aroleheheldforover adecade DuringJFK’sfuneral,hewastasked withprotectingthepresident’schildren Bibsaidshefeltadeepconnectiontothe Kennedyfamily,andthecouplewerefrequent guestsofRobertKennedyinhisVirginiahome.
In1985,AlvinandBibmovedtoSarasota, Florida.Alvinpassedawayin2021.
ThisoralhistorywillbepreservedintheRhode IslandJewishHistoricalAssociation’sdigital database,ensuringthatfuturegenerationscan learnabouttheSalkandGrossmanfamilies
At top, the Cohen family, early 1900s. At bottom, the Salk family, 1917.
Dear members,
Letter from the president
So much has been happening in our office on the lower level of the Dwares Jewish Community Center this winter that it’s almost impossible to know where to begin!
But let’s start with the Hahn project, which our office manager/acting director Jaime Walden told me “has been all-consuming.” And indeed it has.
The project RIJHA is working on with the folks at the Roger Williams National Memorial has involved hiring researchers, meetings with those involved, and scrolling through our archive for relevant materials.
Our two organizations received a $72,500 grant early last fall to educate the public about the Hahn Memorial fountain, which resides in the Roger Williams National Memorial, on North Main Street in Providence. The fountain was donated to the city by Jerome Hahn, the first Jewish member of the state’s Supreme Court.
Phase One of the project included hiring three researchers and a genealogist, who have almost completed their work. One of the most important discoveries so far concerns the local Frolic case, in which 20 Chinese immigrants were jailed under the Chinese Exclusion Act Jerome Hahn was one of their lawyers, and personally paid the bail for all 20 individuals
Phase Two involves incorporating key research findings, such as the Frolic case, into lesson plans, an activity book and an exhibit. And Phase Three will focus on distributing the
completedlessonplansandactivitybook,and displayingexhibitstothegeneralpublic
Akeymomentoftheprojectwillbethe60th anniversaryrededicationoftheHahn Memorialbecominganationalmemorial,in October.
AbigthankyoutoJaimeWaldenandeveryone workingonthisimportantproject!
ThankstoourindustriousarchivistSamTurco, RIJHAnowhasa44-pageguideto managementofthecollectionsandarchive. WiththeencouragementofboardmemberMel TopfandhisAcquisitionsCommittee,Sam producedthiscomprehensivedocument,which includesadetailedpolicyoncollecting.We havelongneededthisinwriting,andwe applaudSamforgettingthejobdone.
OnSunday,April27,at11a.m.,Georgia Hunter,authorof“WeWeretheLuckyOnes,” willjoinusattheDwaresJCCforabooktalk andsigning.Sheisexpectedtodrawasizable crowd.Theeventisfreeandopentothepublic, butregistrationisrequiredToregister,goto rijha.org/events.
Ifyouhavenotrenewedyourmembership,it’s nottoolate.Youcandosoonourwebsite, rijha.org.Wearetheonlystatewidearchivefor RhodeIslandJewishhistory.
LindaLotridgeLevin
President
RIJHA NEWSLETTER VOL. 2, NO. 2
Published quarterly by:
The Rhode Island Jewish Historical Association 401 Elmgrove Ave Providence, RI 02906 www rijha org | 401-331-1360
Please email questions, comments and suggestions to: Jaime Walden, office@rijha org
Publication team:
Executive Editor Jaime Walden
Copy Editor Cynthia Benjamin
Advisers:
Lowell Lisker
Linda Lotridge Levin
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